Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Biden Signs $1.9T Relief Bill Aimed At Bolstering Pandemic Economy
Roll Call: Biden Signs Bill To Provide Almost $2 Trillion In COVID-19 Relief
President Joe Biden signed the first major legislative achievement of his young presidency Thursday afternoon, moving to get a $1.86 trillion COVID-19 aid package into law as quickly as possible. “In the weeks that this bill has been discussed and debated, it’s clear that an overwhelming percentage of the American people: Democrats, independents, Republican friends, have made it clear, the people out there have made it clear they strongly support the American Rescue Plan,” Biden said in the Oval Office. (Lesniewski, 3/11)
NBC News: What's In The $1.9 Trillion Covid Bill Biden Just Signed? You Might Be Surprised.
President Joe Biden signed the massive Covid-19 stimulus bill into law Thursday, touting provisions that will put money into the pockets of millions of Americans. But the bill is more than stimulus payments and jobless benefits. It also includes a litany of programs: health insurance subsidies, a cash-for-kids allowance to slash child poverty, state and local aid (which can't be used to cut taxes) and money for schools, restaurants, pensions, homeowners, renters, farmers and funerals. Here are some of the key provisions. (Kapur and Sarlin, 3/11)
CNBC: The Government Will Fully Cover Laid-Off Workers' COBRA Premiums
The government will pay for laid-off workers to maintain their employer-sponsored health insurance through September, thanks to a provision in the $1.9 trillion stimulus package signed into law on Thursday by President Joe Biden. As part of the relief bill, the government will subsidize COBRA premiums for former workers of a company until the fall. COBRA, or the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, permits people who leave a company with 20 or more employees to pay to stay on their workplace insurance plan for as long as 18 months. (Nova, 3/11)
In related news —
The New York Times: Forecasters Expect Biden’s Stimulus To Rapidly Boost Economy
Just hours after he signed a $1.9 trillion pandemic relief bill into law, President Biden said the package would help to reopen schools and defeat the virus more quickly. Mr. Biden, in a prime-time address, noted that the measure provides $130 billion for schools, an amount that he said will “accelerate a massive effort to reopen our schools safely.” (Tankersley, 3/11)
AP: COVID Relief Bill Could Permanently Alter Social Safety Net
President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package is being hailed by Democrats and progressive policy advocates as a generational expansion of the social safety net, providing food and housing assistance, greater access to health care and direct aid to families in what amounts to a broad-based attack on the cycle of poverty. With more than $6 billion for food security-related programs, more than $25 billion in emergency rental assistance, nearly $10 billion in emergency mortgage aid for homeowners, and extensions of already-expanded unemployment payments through early September, the package is full of provisions designed to help families and individuals survive and recover from pandemic-induced economic hardships. (Khalil and Fram, 3/12)
KHN: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Expanding The ACA In An Unpredicted Way
For the first time since its enactment in 2010, the Affordable Care Act is slated for major benefit expansions, courtesy of the covid relief bill approved by Congress this week. But the changes are only temporary, so the measure also tees up a fight to make them permanent. Meanwhile, the uneven distribution of vaccines continues — with some states finding themselves with more shots than takers, while others continue to have too many arms chasing too few shots. (3/11)
Axios: COVID-19 Stimulus Has Made Americans More Generous
When people have more money, they're more generous to others. The stimulus hasn't just seen the government giving money to the needy. It's helped increase the amount of money in the economy broadly, and that in turn has increased Americans' propensity to help each other out financially. (Salmon, 3/11)
